Bali Week 3

My third week in Bali had ups and downs. Most of the group, except for Ben, had returned to their posts and jobs. So I decided to go off on my own to explore Lombok and the Gilli islands. There was supposed to be amazing snorkeling there.

These are views from the 5 hour ferry from Bali to Lombok.




I stayed only one night in Lombok and left early the next morning for Gili Trawagan. I think I should have stayed and actually seen Lombok, but there's always next time.

The Gili Islands consist of three tiny little islands off of Lombok. I chose the most developed and perhaps this was my mistake. The island was a total party scene full of rich Europeans and sketchy Indonesians. The first day was ok, I relaxed on the beach and did some snorkeling. The snorkeling was not great because there was a really strong current and you couldn't just stay in one place and watch anything. Also I kept getting freaked out that I was like drifting off to sea or about to be hit by a boat. But the beach was fairly pretty.







The island is so small that the only mode of transport is horse carts. No cars, no motorbikes. This was actually really nice.





The first evening was fun. I went to a little bar near the hotel and there were some Americans there and I chatted with a girl who had volunteered in India and had some great stories.

The next day was not so successful. I was getting really harassed by the local men, as a white female alone. After getting absolutely no peace that day or evening, I decided that this island was not the place for me and I wanted to leave first thing the next morning. I would consider going back with a group of people but never by myself. I've traveled alone all over the world and never been harassed like this.

Anyway, I took a ferry back to Bali the next morning.







I decided to go see Ben who was working out of the Bali office of his organization. The office is actually a house with several rooms, so I could stay in a bedroom for free! We went back to Ubud to indulge in Western food one last time and look at a bamboo farm Ben is working with. The Bamboo places was amazingly beautiful











Then I flew back to Java and that's the end of my vacation!